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Dune was anything but a friend to her. Friends don’t do the things they’ve done in the past week, the same things she looked forward to every morning and night. Hell, she thought about him through the day, watching him with the tourists and seeing how gracious and sexy he was. Each time he smiled a crooked smile she wanted to know what he thought about and if his thoughts matched hers—could they sneak away for a moment.
Dune was everything her father despised, mostly because he didn’t have a college education despite owning a company with his family. She found out, over the last week, that he was a co-owner of Blue Lobster Adventures along with his parents. That he had bought fifty percent of the company when he turned twenty-one. Dune told her he knew from the time he was around sixteen that he wanted to run the company and make it the best tourist destination for excursions, and felt like he had succeeded, but knew he could do more.
Deep down, he was a lot like Caroline’s father. Ambitious, driven, and knew a sound investment when it looked him in the face. Still, her dad would never approve of him because he didn’t go to some Ivy league school for an overpriced education. Would that education open doors for her—of course. Are they the doors she wanted open—she was unsure.
But if she didn’t go to work, what would she do? It wasn’t like she had a skill or craft that she could fall back on. She didn’t particularly love anything to the point she wanted it to be her life. She enjoyed reading but that didn’t mean she wanted to be a librarian. The same could be said for shopping or traveling. None of her hobbies would ever be enough for her to devote her life to as a career, and she hated that for herself.
Caroline walked down the cobblestone street, smiling and waving at people as she went by. Last week, after things shifted between her and Dune, she suggested they go shopping. She expected Dune to balk, but he didn’t and made good on his promise to take her. Not only that, but he introduced her to some of the shop owners and made her feel like she truly belonged in Seaport. Now, when she went in, they greeted her like they were old friends.
It was Saturday, and Caroline had taken the day off from work, mostly because she wanted time to relax before her date with Dune later in the evening. They were going to Carter’s Diner again, for the speakeasy he had created for her. That’s what a couple of the locals had dubbed the outside dance club after last week, mostly because Carter’s didn’t have a liquor permit to serve anything more than beer, and they definitely served booze. Dune said his mother worked all week to secure a temporary liquor license so they could open again tonight. It was such a hit, people called the diner all week asking about it. Yet another business venture Dune thought of that made money. Tonight, it wouldn’t be exclusive or just for her. Carter’s Diner would open for everyone, but capacity was limited, unless you knew someone.
She browsed the racks at one of her favorite stores, along the wharf. The shop owner had kept the door open, and the breeze that came in reminded Caroline of Dune. He smelled like the salt air. It was constant and now her favorite smell. She was probably in over her head where he was concerned, but she didn’t care. This was a summer romance, and she was going to relish in every moment she shared with the boat captain.
By lunchtime, she made it over to the docks, with greasy burgers and fries from Carter’s. The group of them sat around the picnic tables and ate, while talking about their plans for the night. Wilson’s girlfriend had to work but planned to be at Carter’s as soon as she got off. Speed had asked a new girl out, one he’d met at the coffee shop, and was not so patiently waiting for her to text him.
“Why do you women make us wait?”
Ana choked on a fry from laughter. “You’re serious, right?”
“What?” he asked dumbfounded.
“Do you know how many times we, and when I say we, I mean all women, have had to wait on men to ‘figure things out’ or ‘decide to text back’?”
Speed stared at Ana.
“She’s right,” Caroline added. “And God forbid if we text you more than once looking for an answer.”
Dune chuckled and stuck a fry in his mouth. “This is why I rarely use my phone. There are zero expectations about the way I communicate.”
He wasn’t wrong. If he told Caroline he’d be at her place at seven, he was there on time or fifteen minutes early. She didn’t have to wonder if he was coming or not. He had never not shown up when he said he would. Even the one night he didn’t come to Diego’s with them, he eventually arrived, even though he told her he wasn’t coming. He’s probably the most honest man she’d ever met, and he definitely wore his heart on his sleeve.
